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Fancy Food Show 2016

6/28/2016

Imagine a New York City City square block filled with tasty offerings from around the world. The Javits Convention Center hosts the yearly Fancy Food Show and it is sumptuous food at its best. Think of a journey through cheese offerings, decadent dessert treats, unique spreads, breads and baked goods, candies and treats, sauces and marinades, deli meats, artisanals ice cream, teas and coffee galore, and pretty much any imaginable food. Separate pavilions house unique foods from around-the-world. Did I mention chocolate.....CHOCOLATE!!

I had a mission. Amidst these incredible gourmet delights were some healthier selections. I'm a big fan of La Croix Sparkling Waters and it was refreshing to have a can as I chowed my way through many of the booths over a two day span.

Forte High Protein Gelato comes in four flavors. At 160 calories, 15 grams of protein and 2.5 grams of fat, it's a healthier "treat" option.

Sante Nuts are a fav of mine that I typically cover at Natural Products Expo West , so it was a delight to run into them at this show.

I was also happy to see Peeled Snacks at the show, with Peas Please organic, baked pea snacks added to their gently dried fruit products. The new pea-based products have no corn or potato fillers, with a base of organic whole peas and whole grain brown rice. Love the single serve garden herb bag!!!

Eat Pops offers vegetable and fruit pops, with a carrot, mango, and pineapple "Glow" pop that clocks in at 45 calories, sweetened with monk fruit. The kale pop had a nice zip to it, with 80 calories per serving.

Lactation nutrition is a small niche that offers foods with galactagogues - nutrients identified to have a milk-boosting impact on nursing mothers. Devo Nutrition for moms offers three flavors of date-based nutrition bars (dark chocolate cranberry, oatmeal raisin and citrus papapya) and a newly launched Chocolate Lacaroons treat.

One ounce mini bags of SuperSeez gourmet dry-roasted pumpkin seeds grab 'n go pouches are a perfect on-the-go protein-rich snack. Vegan, non-GMO, and peanut free you also get a nice dose of iron and zinc!!

Tuna lovers should be aware of Safe Catch, a tuna company that tests individual tuna for mercury before it is canned. Their Safe Catch Elite Tuna has 35 grams of protein, and is slowest in mercury. Packed in BPA-free cans it is perfect for athletes and moms-to-be. There is also a low sodium option.

Instead of all the crappy, sugary, processed fruit snacks you offer your kids (and eat yourself) consider Fruit Bliss - dried fruit with no preservatives, GMOs or added sugar. Tomatoes and golden berries are their newest products.

Higher protein, lower carb pastas are the rage and Explore offers pulse-based pastas made from organic beans, lentils and chickpeas. Look for Black Bean Spaghetti,Edamame and Mung Bean Fettuccini and Soybean Spaghetti. Love the Red Lentil Penne and Chickpea Fusilli. They also have a no-cook Green Lentil Lasagna noodles. Taste test was yummy!

Crispy Green is another favorite of mine at Natural Products Expo West and I enjoy the range of their options including apple, Asian pear, banana, canteloupe, mango, pineapple and tangerine pure fruit, freeze-dried snacks. Adults and kids will love these crispy good-for-you treats!!

Want an alternative to nut snacks? Biena Chickpea Snacks offer a nice dose of protein and fiber with sea salt, cinnamon, barbecue and honey roasted plus a creamy Rockin Ranch. Check the nutrition label so you are clear on serving size, sodium and calories.

Republic of Tea did not disappoint with their amazing variety and line of teas. Hot and cold, they are delicious and refreshing.

Glad to see Brami Lupino Beans here - It was a new find at Natural Products Expo West and they seem to be rolling out and growing.....try it!!

Special mention of Pereg for their quinoa products and cous cous lines, Renfro for their amazing salsa lines, Nu-Go, ProBar and Omega-Bar nutrition bars, Mamma Chia "4 grams of sugar" Chia Bars, Beanitos Hint of Lime Skinny Dippers, and Tonnino Tuna.

Natural Products Expo West....Bars, Seaweed, Beans, Nuts....and More!!

3/14/2016

Still my favorite bars, with four low sugar choices (and I do mean "low sugar," these bars are perfect for a pre or post workout large snack or small meal - I have it with coffee in the A.M. and hit my exercise with a big boost of protein and energy. Most of us, not just individuals with prediabetes or diabetes can benfit from reading labels, and noting sugar levels in our nutrition bars. We also need to know the source of the sweetener. Chicory root is what these bars use for sweetness and fiber.

The RX Bars tell you exactly what's in them, using a front-of-the-label clear ingredients list. You will recognize all the ingredients, including dates which provide the sweetness (14 grams of sugar). Personally, I like a clean label, and a simple recipe list.

Oh Yeah, I do like these bars!! Several to choose from, low in sugar and a big dose of protein!! On average 220 calories and 22 grams of mixed whey-based protein. Pretty simple ingredient list - They're available in stores and online - birthday cake will be my way of celebrating healthy nutrition (that one is also a huge fav with fitness folks)!!

Next up: Some bean and nut "finds!!"

Chia and water and yogurt...oh my!

3/16/2014

Covering an event like the Natural Products Expo West 2014 requires physical and gastronomic stamina. The array of foods, skincare, wellness and health products are dizzying. This year over 65,000 attendees tasted, smelled and slathered their way through aisle after aisle of products. Frankly, as a health professional who also happens to be a journalist, I pride myself on caloric restraint and mostly healthy food choices most of the time. Putting a health halo on foods can confuse you - even healthy foods require portion control, and even the healthiest of processed foods are not meant to entirely replace the simple fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, legumes, teas, and water that should frequent our daily diet. But we all want pizza, quick grab snacks and meal bars, the best choices in yogurts and alternative milks, and certainly better-for-you swap outs that include un-fried fries, carb free noodles, baked chips, dried and baked fruit products, nut butters, condiments, soups, entrees and more. This show has them all. And at this once-a year event, I am the uber-taste tester, which means that my a.m. exercise and all day walking have to somehow balance out all the mouthfuls I eat……they don’t. So I resign myself to just enjoying the chomping in the name of food and trend reviews.

Chia, chia everywhere. Chia is clearly trending strong, but not all chia is created equal, and I got quite the education on whole grain Salba brand, otherwise known as Salvia Hispanica at their booth. Used by Purely Elizabeth, and recommended by Rachel Beller, the nutritionist on The Biggest Loser, Salba conveniently comes in single serve packets. The health benefits of chia include a large dose of omeage-3 fatty acids (ALA), fiber, antioxidants, magnesium, potassium, iron – it’s a nutrient powerhouse. You can add it to salads, soups, oatmeal or cereal, yogurt or make a healthier meatloaf or muffin with a packet or two. It averages about 70 calories per pack and may help you to feel more satiated too.

I don’t think that you can easily replace real pasta or noodles BUT I do know that many dieters want to control their “grain carbohydrate” intake. As a nutritionist, I do think we all eat too many servings of grains – even the healthy ones. To be clear, that category includes cereals, breads, rice, pasta, muffins, crackers, even peas, corn and potatoes. So I have been recommending kelp noodles to clients and consumers for awhile. KonaBerry noodles by Sea Tangle are just the latest variation on low calorie noodles that allow you “bulk for few calories.” You have to be willing to rinse, re-rinse and rinse these noodles again and again, and store unused leftovers in a container filled with water. And the source of these new noodless – Hawaii’s konaberry - offers a range of anti-oxidants. Soon to be available online and nationwide, I just think these noodles can help a dieter looking to fill up for a small calorie cost. Enveloping these noodles, once they’re rinsed thoroughly, in a tomato sauce, soup, or salad may help to limit the slightly chewy texture and the ‘fishy” aftertaste some people experience. Let’s put it this way – it works for me!

We should all be drinking more water and unsweetened teas. For some people, plain H2O just isn’t appealing, so gently flavored waters or zero calorie teas can be the next best thing. Zero-calorie fortified waters though calorie free, are not innocuous, because of their vitamin content. Ayala herbal waters come in flat and sparkling, and have somewhat refreshing, sophisticated flavors like Lemongrass Mint Vanilla, Lavendar Mint, Cloves Cardamom Cinnamon, Cinnamon Orange Peel, and Ginger Lemon Peel. I’ve been a fan for years, and now a line of teas are new entrants to the product line. Chamomile Bergamot Vanilla, Nutmeg Cacao Nibs Cardamom, Peppermint Melissa Spearmint, and Rooibos Cinnamon Rose Petal are sophisticated and palate-pleasing. They will fill my pantry shelves shortly.

Why do I keep hearing about diets that bash fruit? C’mon folks, there isn’t a better fast food as in grab food on the planet. And yes, that includes bananas and watermelon which often get bashed for being super dense or super sweet. If everyone swapped out all the processed “healthy food” they’re eating and committed to eating 4 or 5 fruit servings daily, trust me, you’d enjoy taste, fiber, health benefits and your body (and probably your waistline) would benefit from the fewer so-called healthy, processed choices you eat. But I agree that sometimes you may just want an alternative, and Peeled Snacks Apple Clusters (there are 3 to choose from) pass muster. Just organic apples plus juice and 60 calories per serving – perfect to mix with nuts for a full-bodied snack, and the whole family can enjoy them. (I am munching as I write)

I constantly tell consumers and clients that nut butters are a fabulous way to enjoy protein, and it pairs so well with ingredients in a fruit smoothie or just on a fruit. Baked crackers and nut butters are a great pick-me-up snack and there’s nothing yummier than a waffle and nut butter. I prefer to grind my own, sans any additional ingredients other than the nuts themselves. But I do agree that single serve packs are great for travel and highly preferable to other high fat/processed spreads. Some of the decadent flavors from this year’s Expo include Earth Balance Coconut and Peanut spread (Vanilla Bean + Expresso yummy too), Barney Butter Almond Butter Honey plus Flax (they also make Raw plus Chia). Love, love the Nutzo To-Go “7 nuts and seeds” spreads too – just nuts and seeds and 1 gram of sugar per serving!

If you want to turn your experience with a spread into a decadent treat, I was insane over the chocolate (from Venezuela) spread flavors from Ek Chok (distributed by Premier Organics which included licorice, rose, cardamom, vanilla, and others – perfect for a berry dip!! Remember, this is a treat moment!!

Other notable mentions from my taste-testing include a stop by Alexia, which is now offering 98% fat free roasted fries , Gardein fishless filets (coming soon) rich in protein and omega-3 fatty acids , Lesser Evil Super 4 White Bean Bites that include quinoa, lentil and chia too, Beanitos Baked Bean Puffs, and IPS egg white chips, which have 7 grams of protein per each pressure-puffed serving. It will take me a while to share thoughts on new and old standby nutrition bars…stay tuned for that.

And of course, there’s my go-to-after-dinner treat. I’m a big fan of “around 100 calorie” yogurt bars and frankly, Skinny Cow has been my choice for a while. Well, Yasso did lasso me with their new flavored Greek Yogurt Bars, and I couldn’t pick a favorite. Hands down I lusted after Mint Chocolate, Sea Salt Caramel and Raspberry Dark Chocolate. Remember, these are treats, so despite sugars in the range of 11-16 grams, the nutritionals are far healthier than their tasty and high fat, mainstream counterparts!!

Lots more to come on reviews and trends in future blogs……gotta get on the treadmill now!!

Scoping out the Natural Products Expo 2014 with kids and families in mind

2/24/2014

The children food and beverage market is a $23 billion market. According to “The Kid Food and Beverage Market in the U.S.,” 7th edition report, food manufacturers specifically target kids in seven specific categories: dairy products, snacks, frozen foods, beverages, cereal, shelf stable meals and produce.  Taste is crucial, but so is nutrition, and believe it or not, entertainment.  Hence cartoon figures and high profile athletes and celebs as part of a kid-targeted food campaign.  Growth of kids’ foods is pacing faster than all other sectors, according to certain tracking indices.  And food manufacturers consider nine year olds pretty established in their lifelong dietary habits and preferences, something that I am keenly aware of as a health professional and nutritionist.  By the time a child is nine years old, his palate can be corrupted for life.  An apple just won’t measure up to a bag of cheese puffs…….ever!

So when I attend a food and products show like Natural Products Expo West, I am especially interested in finding foods with simple ingredient lists, few if any additives, good taste, affordability and nationwide accessibility.  Most American families concerned with the obesity epidemic that is affecting adults and kids, and with its associated high rates of diabetes, hypertension and worrisome cholesterol levels, should be trying to eat simple nutritious foods that are less processed. Unfortunately reality demands quick food decisions, eating on the run, and emphasizing convenience as a singular, high value commodity.  I’d love to see home cooking as an integral part of American life – but I am forced to recognize that consumers want quick food answers.  So I plan on scouting out “the best choices” from a variety of product sectors including: cereals, baked goods, snacks and treats, soups, easy-to-prepare entrees and side dishes, nutrition bars, nut butters to name a few.  I also plan to check out seasonings and taste enhancements since boosting flavor is crucial to reducing sugar and fat in recipes.  Adults and kids are still drinking too many “fluid calories” and so zero-calorie flavored waters and  teas are also on my priority list.  Nutrition bars have become an integral part of the American diet, so I am always ready to hear about new formulations and reformulations, new tastes and the research behind the specific protein/fat/carbohydrate formularies.

I’d be lying if I said I don’t enjoy all the taste-testing that goes on at the event….heck, I wait for this all year.  But as someone who covers diet and fitness, and as a Health Coach, this event is invaluable in helping me to track the trends being set by manufacturers in response to their perception of what consumers want.  The question is – are the products healthy, wholesome and nutritious, and do the labels reflect an overall effort to provide healthier, nutritious foods with true label transparency?

Stay tuned for my Natural Products West 2014 food and trend reviews!!

AMY HENDEL

Amy Hendel is a Physician Assistant and Health Coach with over 20 years of experience. Noted author, journalist and lifestyle expert, she brings extensive expertise to her monthly shareposts. Her most recent book, The 4 Habits of Healthy Families is available for purchase online, and you can watch her in action on her shows Food Rescue and What's for Lunch? Sign up for her daily health tweets or catch her daily news report at www.healthgal.com.

Fanc﻿y Food Show 2016